Dresden to Produce Live Action Grave of the Fireflies

Dresden to Produce Live Action Grave of the Fireflies

Article excerpt

Dresden Pictures has acquired the UK rights to Japanese war story Grave of the Fireflies for a live action adaptation.

The semi-autobiographical novel, by Akiyuki Nosaka (????), was originally published in 1967 and later adapted as an animated feature by Shinchosha (???) through Studio Ghibli in 1988, directed by Isao Takahata.

A live action version was made for Japanese broadcaster NTV in 2005 but Dresden Pictures is the first production company outside of Japan to have optioned development rights to the story.

Produced by Liam Garvo and James Heath through Dresden Pictures, there are plans to start shooting in 2014.

The story is based on Nosaka's experiences during and after the firebombing of Kobe, Japan in 1945. It centres on the struggle of two orphaned Japanese children - 14 year-old Seita and his four year-old sister, Setsuko - during World War II.

Nosaka wrote Grave of the Fireflies (?????) as a personal apology to his sister regarding her death and was awarded the Naoki Prize for best popular literature. …